Using Discord to Actively Discuss Crypto & NFTs
For those not in the crypto, DeFi, and NFT communities, Discord might not be the first platform that comes to mind. But let me tell you… it’s a huge part of the daily social media experience of anyone who’s dipped their toes in the ever-emerging world of Web3.
Discord is mainly used to build and manage communities and to keep them informed and engaged. It’s massively important to a project’s success, especially when it comes to long-term sustainability and FUD prevention. It’s also the way most NFT mints are orchestrated (not counting the actual website and smart contracts of course.
With that said, I figured I would talk about some of the Discord servers I visit most and what I’m doing in them exactly. I’ve been in many others that I’ve left for one reason or another, but at the time of writing this, I’m in 29 servers. Since I’m in so many, I’ll talk about the 4 that I find myself in the most.
My Top 4 Discord Servers
Cryptomories
The Cryptomories is an NFT project and one of the best NFT communities on Twitter. It’s a PFP NFT project composed of different randomized features. I joined this discord for the community, for updates from the founders/artist, and to keep up with the everyday going-ons of the project I invested in (I currently own 2). In NFTs, the stronger the community, the more people want to join and purchase one themselves.
Discussions include strategies that will lend value to the project, resulting in higher yields upon sales, especially on NFT trading platforms like OpenSea. This is always based in an ETH format as the Mories were released on the Ethereum blockchain. Also, the more the devs/creators are involved in the project, the more benefits the community receives, including access to games, free additional art, etc. This of course lends value to the project you invested in.
Additionally, the Cryptomories partnered with Impact Suite to offer all holders of their NFTs free teletherapy services in order to maintain good mental health — something that can be challenging to do in the world of crypto and NFTs. Even though there’s a bear market and many NFTs have lost all value, the Cryptomories community is still going strong. To me, even though prices may have dropped this community and project is ready for when the bull market returns and will cement itself as one of the main NFT projects in the space.
Star Atlas
Star Atlas is a very ambitious NFT Metaverse game based in space. I actually found out about them when I found out about another project the CEO was involved in (Multichain Ventures) which had secured a pilot program contract from the State of Nevada (where I live) to create a cannabis cryptocurrency used for dispensaries in the state to avoid cash problems associated with the cannabis industry.
I happened to come across their Twitter and actually only ended up in the Star Atlas Discord and never the one for TKS (despite still being an investor). Star Atlas attracted me because of the ambition, the vast assortment of team members they had recruited to build this massive project, and the team’s availability and accountability to their investors. They are very active with piles of content to release including videos, images, updates, live chats, etc. Also, this was the first project I had ever heard about that was built on the Solana blockchain. Therefore it also proved a valuable way to introduce myself to a new chain and become familiar with it.
Finally, I loved that they were working with some of the DJs and Producers I know to create some of their NFT metaverse posters including Blondish, Deadmau5, Bassjackers, etc. Just an all-around amazing community. This is a complex project so being in the Discord and having the team and the community there to help answer any questions is a very valuable resource to have at your fingertips.
Geode Finance
The Geode Finance Discord is another server I’ve been a part of for a while. I’ve followed the project as much of the team transitioned into this new project from another server I was a part of in the past — a project called SharedStake where the developer of the project ended up losing over $1,000,000 on bad bets and drained the project of resources. However, from devastating fires often arise unique flowers that bloom in the worst conditions possible. And that’s the case with Geode Finance.
While I assumed it was going to be a similar project to the last, it turned out that the project grew into something greater and much more ambitious. Basically, the old project was a “staking as a service” provider, similar to Lido. However, upon exiting from that project, their new one decided to create a completely new concept that was a Business-to-Business approach to staking rather than going the Business-to-Customer route. This had never been done so I’m always interested in innovation in the crypto space.
Considering Geode Finance plans to become a multi-chain staking provider for other DAOs to turn their stagnant treasury assets into yield-generating assets, the potential for many DAOs would be to make hundreds of millions of dollars in additional profit each year. Therefore, when considering there are multiple chains with multiple DAOs, this has the potential to create billions of dollars in revenue for the entire crypto space, as long as the blockchain is based on a Proof of Stake platform.
This, to me, is one of the biggest investment opportunities waiting to blow up, and its launch on Avalanche just happened last week with the introduction of Yield Yak’s new $yyAVAX liquid staking token. Another great reason to get in on projects early are “airdrops”. This is where a DAO or project you invested in early or used early on essentially splits up some of its treasury and gives it back to the users or investors. So just for being early, you get rewarded. I have a feeling this will happen with Geode, as I’ve seen it in the past with $ENS, $SCRT, $SDL, etc.
Secret Network
Speaking of $SCRT, I’m also in the Secret Network server. This was one of the first Discords I ever joined and I did so after listening to a podcast where a well-respected crypto-Twitter user spoke about the importance of privacy-focused coins and privacy-focused blockchains. I was drawn to this after learning how blockchain stored all your transactions and that anyone could look up wallets to see how much money you had. It seemed a lot less private than I had initially thought. And that drew me to Secret Network.
When I arrived, I didn’t have much invested in crypto and I saw that they had a program to utilize their Discord members and create a promotional team to get the word out. I joined up and became a Secret Agent. As a result, I was able to start participating in the many facets of the program, learn about multiple parts of Secret Network and Cosmos, and start being rewarded for my efforts in SCRT tokens. So I’m still in this community today because I enjoy the people, the project, and the way that they work with their community to become a more cohesive unit.
What’s So Great About Discord?
The great thing about Discord is that you’re essentially able to reach out and communicate directly with the CEOs, designers, developers, and creators of multimillion-dollar and multibillion-dollar projects. When’s the last time I could send a message to the CEO of Bank of America or Berkshire Hathaway and get a direct response from them answering a question I had? You can do this in crypto Discord servers. You also have a direct community that may also be there to help guide you through things and explain stuff that you don’t quite comprehend.
The CEO of Star Atlas personally walked me through learning how to use the WAVES blockchain and how to start staking on their project, and he is ridiculously busy, but never too busy to help anyone who needs it. This builds brand loyalty and a connection you just can’t find on other communications platforms.
Twitter, you’ll be lucky to get a like or a share. Reddit you just get upvoted comments and responses from random people. LinkedIn is basically all spam now so I’ve stopped using it completely and I own my own business. I never check my inbox anymore, and reaching out to most people of importance is a paid feature. In essence, Discord allows a concentrated community to build and grow and to develop a cohesive bond between everyone. Finally, Discord is great because of the way you can organize your servers into different channels. This makes a variety of information easy to locate.
What’s Unique About Discord and Why Do Crypto & NFT Projects Use It?
I think Discord is unique in the fact that it’s much more focused on being a cohesive unit and direct communication force. And I have yet to find anything like it.
For example, Twitter is great at building a following of people to see and respond to your announcements and comments. However, you just have followers. You don’t have a community as you do in Discord.
With Reddit, even on specific subReddits, you have generic discussions that are all over the place about various subtopics, comments, etc. It’s more of a message board than a community-building tool.
Facebook groups can bring people together who are interested in a similar topic but it’s never about building a community. It’s about chatting about a similar topic. A few people may form bonds, but they’re not proud to be a part of that community. I’ll happily say I’m part of the Cryptomories or that I’m excited to invest in a project like Geode Finance because I know what that means to the greater crypto community at large. Nobody is proud to be in the “Cryptocurrency Investments and Trading” Facebook group.
In my opinion, Instagram is all spam at this point. At best it’s just bots and fake profiles interacting with fake people who pretend they are living lives that make the people sad or jealous. There is basically nothing of value there for the crypto space. Even large legitimate projects ignore it because it’s nothing but spam and scams.
Telegram is popular with crypto investors because it’s a great way to have fast conversations on a specific topic or project. It has its purpose but there is not much of a community aspect there, other than you’re all discussing the same topic or trying to pump the same coin. Nothing in conversations is cataloged and nothing is easy to find. It’s about creating hype for the most part.
The Takeaway? Join Discord if You Want to Get Involved in Web3!
In conclusion, the biggest and most unique thing about Discord is that it’s used to create, build, and engage with a very niche community. And as a member of a crypto discord, you’re rewarded with knowledge, information, discussions, and plans that help guide your investment decisions better.
If you’re looking to get involved in the crypto/NFT space, pay attention, and if you don’t have a Discord, you may want to sign up for one right now.
